Week 5 wrap: Sandy Creek, Dutchtown beat defending champions

Other big winners include Marist, Northside-Warner Robins, Prince Avenue Christian, Brooks County
Members of the Northside high school football team celebrate the victory during the North Cobb vs. Northside high school football game on Friday, September 16, 2022, in Kennesaw, Georgia. Northside defeated North Cobb 20-17. CHRISTINA MATACOTTA FOR THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION.

Credit: Christina Matacotta

Credit: Christina Matacotta

Members of the Northside high school football team celebrate the victory during the North Cobb vs. Northside high school football game on Friday, September 16, 2022, in Kennesaw, Georgia. Northside defeated North Cobb 20-17. CHRISTINA MATACOTTA FOR THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION.

Sandy Creek and Dutchtown defeated struggling 2021 state champions Friday night while traditional powers Marist, Northside-Warner Robins, Prince Avenue Christian, Brooks County and Irwin County won notable games in the fifth weekend of the Georgia high school football season.

Sandy Creek, the No. 5 team in Class 3A, beat 7A’s defending champion Collins Hill 33-17. Collins Hill lost to another 3A team, No. 1 Cedar Grove, last week. Sandy Creek is 4-1, its only loss in overtime to another 7A team, East Coweta.

Dutchtown defeated two-time defending 5A champion Warner Robins 14-7 in a Region 2-5A game. Dutchtown is ranked No. 4, and Warner Robins at No. 7, so it wasn’t a giant upset, but the Demons’ 1-3 record was unforeseen. Dutchtown is 5-0 under first-year coach Niketa Battle.

In 6A, Marist and Northside bounced back from last week’s losses. Marist, ranked No. 10, beat No. 2 Blessed Trinity 21-17 to improve to 3-2. Blessed Trinity had started 3-0. Unranked Northside is 2-2 after beating Class 7A’s No. 4 team, North Cobb, 20-17 in overtime. Northside stopped a fourth-and-goal play from the two on the final play.

Prince Avenue Christian beat Eagle’s Landing Christian 30-15 in a game between teams that began the season ranked No. 1. Prince Avenue Christian, of Class A Division I, remains on top with a 4-0 record. ELCA, ranked No. 4 in 2A, is 1-3, with each loss to a current top-five team.

Brooks County, the 2021 champion in the old Class A Public, beat 4A’s No. 6 team, Bainbridge, 26-18. Brooks County (4-1) entered ranked No. 6 in the new A Division I.

Irwin County, the No. 5 team in A Division I, beat 2A’s No. 6 team, Rockmart, 28-14. Irwin County’s only loss is to No. 2 Fitzgerald of 2A.

Mill Creek and Starr’s Mill also earned significant victories.

Mill Creek, ranked No. 3 in 7A, beat Cedar Grove 52-36. Cedar Grove (3-1) had beaten Westlake and Collins Hill from 7A the previous two weeks before meeting its match against the much larger Gwinnett County school. Mill Creek is 4-0.

In 4A, No. 6 Starr’s Mill beat No. 10 LaGrange 25-24 in overtime in a game between unbeaten teams. Both are in Region 4.

Six other top-10 teams lost, but against larger or higher-ranked teams.

Three were Class 3A teams as No. 2 Carver-Atlanta lost to Buford, No. 4 Oconee County lost to Burke County, and No. 6 Peach County lost to Perry.

The others were in Class A Division II as No. 5 Washington-Wilkes lost to Elbert County, No. 6 Aquinas lost to Harlem, and No. 7 Charlton County lost to Pierce County.

A game between No. 7 Thomson of Class 2A and Laney was suspended when gunfire was heard outside Laney’s stadium, according to WFXG-TV, which posted a Facebook video showing players running off the field while some fans were panicked while others remained calm. No injuries were reported.